Brewers 4, Cubs 2: Hits? Where we're going, we don't need hits

Win: Wily Peralta (1-1)
Loss: Scott Feldman (0-3)
Save: Jim Henderson (4)

HR: Braun (5), Rizzo (6)

MVP: Ryan Braun (.289 WPA)
LVP: Norichika Aoki (-.119)

Fangraphs Win Expectancy Graph
Boxscore

I'm guessing Wily Peralta wouldn't mind playing the Cubs more often. Two of his four starts this season have come against the fledgling Chicago team. Those have been far and away his two best starts. For the second time against the Cubs, Peralta went 6.2 innings and allowed just two runs. He wasn't quite as on point as last time, but he allowed just five hits and three walks.

The only big mistake Peralta made today was in the third inning on a 2-2 slider to Anthony Rizzo that resulted in a two run homer and drew first blood in the game. A breaking ball trailing inside to the left handed Rizzo is a bad idea in general. Peralta compounded the problem by leaving it right over the middle of the plate. Rizzo is too good of a hitter to miss that, and he clobbered a no-doubter into center field.

Cubs starter Scott Feldman also pitched well, and for a while had the Brewers completely stumped. Cubs pitching was so good that Milwaukee only had three hits all day, all of which came off Feldman, who went five innings. Milwaukee had just one hit through the first three innings, then loaded the bases on three walks from Feldman. He may have been too concerned about Jean Segura, who led the inning off with a walk and was dancing around at first throughout the next couple of hitters.

Ryan Braun struck out following Segura, then, with Rickie Weeks up, the shortstop finally broke for second and then reached third as Chicago catcher Welington Castillo's throw sailed into the outfield. Weeks then walked, followed by Martin Maldonado walking. Weeks also stole second during the exchange. With the bases loaded, Alex Gonzalez grounded out, but drove in Segura. A Carlos Gomez strikeout ended the inning with no further damage done.

Fortunately, Wily Peralta wasn't the only one to make a mistake today. In the fourth inning, Ryan Braun absolutely crushed a hanging breaking ball for a three-run homer to put the Brewers on top for good. Scott Feldman could have ended the inning before Braun came to bat, but muffed a Jean Segura chopper and couldn't throw him out. Yuniesky Betancourt had doubled to lead off the inning, then was followed by two strikeouts before Segura reached base.

Peralta came out in the seventh inning after a two-out walk and single. John Axford came in for the third out and got it on a David Dejesus fly ball. Tom Gorzelanny pitched a clean eighth inning, then started the ninth with a walk and was pulled in favor of Jim Henderson. Henderson notched two straight strikeouts, then a groundout to end the game.

Ryan Braun also was ejected in the eighth inning of today's game following an iffy called strike three for Braun's third strikeout of the day. Braun flipped his bat high in the air as he walked back to the dugout, an automatic ejection. He didn't say a thing, and nobody on the Brewers' side made a move to argue the ejection.

This is the Brewers seventh consecutive win. They have not done that since 2011 when they had their phenomenal hot stretch through July and August. That was started with a seven game win streak from July 26-Aug. 1 as the Brewers swept the Cubs and Astros, and won the first game of a series against the Cardinals.

The Brewers will look to keep the hot streak alive tomorrow as the begin a series against the Padres in San Diego. First pitch is scheduled for 9:10 CT as Kyle Lohse and Jason Marquis square off.